At this point, the conventional wisdom about Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo is cemented. He's a choke artist on the big stage. The coloratura soprano whose voice cracks on opening night. The actor who flubs his monologue on "Saturday Night Live." Romo simply seems to fail whenever he steps on the field in a big spot.

Since his game-losing interception in a 51-48 loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday, attacks on Romo have never been sharper. But a closer analysis of game tape suggests that not only is the book on Romo wrong, the truth is actually a surprise: Romo is a great quarterback to have in a big game.

The first time Romo threw a fourth-quarter interception, it was 2006. In relief of Drew Bledsoe and with the Cowboys hurrying to erase a 25-16 deficit, Romo threw a short pass to the left side intended for running back Julius Jones. Instead it was intercepted by lineman Fred Robbins and the Giants sealed the game. To fans who believe they've suffered years of Romo trauma, that play lives in infamy as the moment the agony began.

ENLARGE

The pocket collapses on Romo before his critical late-game interception.
NFL

But a deeper look reveals Romo to be the NFL's leader in fourth-quarter passer rating (102.0) among active quarterbacks. That is a full 10 points higher than New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.

Furthermore, Romo isn't even close to the NFL's worst at throwing fourth-quarter interceptions. Since the start of 2007, when he became a full-time starter, he's thrown 19 fourth-quarter picks. Two quarterbacks that fans would never dream of calling chokers—Drew Brees of the New Orleans Saints and Eli Manning of the New York Giants—both lap Romo in the late-game dud department with 32 apiece.

Romo's mistakes come in the context of a Dallas offensive system that relies on a vertical passing game with plenty of deep routes run by outside wide receivers and "option" routes by tight ends in the middle of the field. Those routes rely on a tight end reading the defense and running a route from there, which means timing and decision-making are important. When you add complexity, mistakes happen.

Romo's Sunday interception was a study in the raw deal he sometimes gets. Overall, he threw for 506 yards and five touchdowns. Yet he'll be forever judged by his critics for one sequence: With the game tied at 48 points apiece and a little over two minutes left, Romo took a snap at his own 14-yard line with three receivers to his left and one to his right. The Broncos were sending three pass rushers at Romo, a number that should have been easily managed by the five Cowboys on the offensive line.

But after the snap, something went drastically wrong. Denver defensive end Derek Wolfe, who was lined up directly in front of Dallas center Travis Frederick, began to whip Frederick so thoroughly he was able to disrupt the play. Yet the two extra Dallas linemen, who didn't have anyone to block, were otherwise occupied trying to erase an outside pass rusher who wasn't coming anywhere close to the quarterback.

Despite this nuisance directly in front of him, Romo remained calm, waiting in the pocket for the play to develop. Three receivers did variations of the Cowboys' usual vertical route (running down the field as fast as possible with little subterfuge).

Cowboys tight end Gavin Escobar, who was lined up to the left of the offensive line, crossed the field on his route and Romo saw Escobar get a smidgen of separation from Broncos linebacker Danny Trevathan. The only problem? That offensive line again.

Around the time Escobar got open, Cowboys guard Ronald Leary finally figured out that Wolfe, the Broncos lineman, was on his way to maul the quarterback—so he moved swiftly toward Wolfe and knocked him down. Trouble was, he had waited so long to help that he walked right into Romo's throwing line—dramatically altering his follow-through and general aim. That smidgen of separation Escobar once had was erased, Romo underthrew the ball and Trevathan came up with the ball that would lead to the Broncos' game-winning field goal.

After studying every Romo fourth-quarter interception available in the NFL's video database, one thing is clear: The typical Romo interception play involves at least one significant breakdown.

Sometimes Romo will try to force the ball into a tight space for the sake of a big gain. That can backfire. In many cases, it's pressure up the middle (like his stinker of a pass in Week 17 against the Washington Redskins last season) or a general offensive-line breakdown (October 2011, against the Lions). This can lead to a lob pass that is picked off.

There are, of course, other contributing factors. Romo doesn't do especially well with defenders in his face (although he isn't alone there). He also isn't the fastest arm in the west. According to Pro Football Focus, he throws the ball in 2.7 seconds on average—which is about normal for a starting quarterback. In another famous choking incident—a devastating pick thrown in 2011 against the New York Jets—the player he was throwing to, Dez Bryant, was so hobbled by injury he couldn't run his route effectively.

Let's be clear: Romo has had his share of ugliness. His 2007 botched field-goal hold against Seattle in the playoffs is among the worst maneuvers in recent football history. But on the matter of choking in big games, the facts don't line up. All told, Romo has a 114.0 passer rating in the fourth quarter of Sunday night games—a slot generally reserved for the best teams. That is actually better than the figure when he plays at 1 p.m. on Sundays. And Romo has a 95.6 rating in the fourth quarters of 4 p.m. games.

Maybe Romo's biggest problem is that some of his most glaring failures have happened to be shown in prime time—which is, of course, a function of the fact that his team is popular and good, which has a lot to do with the guy who plays quarterback.

Really he is a good quarterback, with, Parcels,Harbaugh, Belecheck,as his coach he would be a REAL starwhere he's at, well only 1 playoff game won nuff said you can't blame it all on the offensive line after all these years !

Sure, let's use your analogy. What if baseball Player A (Romo's baseball counterpart) had the overall statistics to make him one of the most productive hitters of his generation -- say, a lifetime average of .320 -- but struggled with runners in scoring position? Would he not still be a tremendous asset? Surely you'd agree that he'd be better than Player B, whose batting record improved in big spots but who has generally proven himself to be fairly mediocre (.270) over the long haul (to choose a recent football example, think Flacco)? I submit that Player A, given how productive he is overall, is vastly superior to Player B.

But wait, that analogy is flawed! Because, as the author points out, Romo is actually incredibly effective in the fourth quarter ("with runners in scoring position," or "crunch time," or whatever lazy phrase you want to come up with to confirm your simple narrative biases) and actually raises his game in such situations! He'd have a really high batting average with RISP. As a Giants fan, I can rejoice when he screws up, but I watch enough to realize that he's a terrifying opponent who consistently torches our defense.

To solely focus on his miscues (several of which have been huge, as even the staunchest Romo fan would have to admit) betrays a lack of appreciation for his overall performance, not to mention the sport's complexity and everything that goes into a "W-L" record. Quarterbacks, even transcendent ones, can't do it all by themselves. And with so much parity in the league, it's lazy to argue, as so many commenters have, that a QB can only be judged by his playoff success. To use the typical punching bags, Trent Dilfer > Dan Marino, right guys?

Exactly right William. Completely hypothetical but what would their record be without him. After all, without 6 TDs, over 500 yards passing from him last Sunday they would not have even been in a position with 2 mins left to win the game.

Romo is a terrific QB. Cherry-pick a few of his bad plays or games (which all QBs have) and of course you can make your case that he isn't in elite status. But informed people realize his overall performance absolutely places him in the top 10 starters in the league.

That's great that his Fourth quarter passer rating is 102, His QB rating this past Sunday I'm sure was a high one, but with the game on the line he threw his lone interception. Big players rise to the occasion in big spots, so far Tony has yet to do that. The Cowboys better fix that defense otherwise good ole Monte will be joining his son in the unemployment line.

The crisis with Romo is not his numbers, his statistics, or comparing those to other QBs in the league. Who really cares if Brees has more 4th quarter INTs than Romo?? Does that matter? What matters is simple: Who Wins The Game?

You can argue statistics and data all day long. While you can argue that it shouldn't "only be about winning" the truth is THAT is how we judge these athletes. Joe Montana and Brett Favre made plenty of mistakes. Few people remember the absolute pounding that Elway took in Super Bowls before the end of his career before he won two.... And yet, they won. So they are revered.

Romo will never be considered a "great" QB regardless of his statistics. He must win games. He must win big games. Until that happens, the Eagles, Giants, and Redskins are thrilled to play him twice a season.

Drew Brees and Eli Manning may have combined for more fourth-quarter picks than Romo, but they've also combined for three Super Bowl wins. Romo has won one playoff game -- and the Cowboys were routed the following week by Minnesota.

I couldn't help but notice, too, one huge error in the story. That bobbled snap against Seattle came on an extra-point, not a field goal (a remarkable deja vu to North Dallas 40). It would have tied the game and forced overtime, coming as it did with just seconds to go.

I think 4th quarter total stats are misleading. He may be much better and more productive in the 4th quarter than his peers, in games they have a 4th quarter lead; while being much worse (choking) than his peers in games they're behind in the 4th and have to come back. The proper stat would be his rating vs. all QB in games their team is behind to start the 4th. My thoughts . . .

Romo has been a choke artist since he fumbled the snap on what would have been the game winning field goal in Seattle and won the game for the Seahawks, sending them into the second round of the playoffs.

He had a brief and brilliant career when he dated Jessica Simpson but after Simpson dumped him, he has done little but choke.

Break down the interception from Sunday's game and explain how it was not Romo's fault.

There is one problem you can't get away from: we all knew it was coming.

When Tony Romo leads his team through several playoff wins-- and out duels a favored opponent (a la Eli taking not one but two rings from Tom Brady)-- then you can tell me what an elite quarterback Romo is.

Possibly the worst drivel I've seen on WSJ. Let's break it down:- The author wants to say that Romo has fewer 4th quarter interceptions than some other quarterbacks yet then, in the next breath, claims the Dallas offense is so complicated that mistakes happen (next breath) despite the fact that Dallas receivers run "without subterfuge". Huh? Let me translate: "Tony Romo threw fewer interceptions than Eli, and the reason he threw more interceptions is because the offense is intricate, and the reason it is intricate is because the receivers just run down the field like Banshees."- Romo throws interceptions only when there is a breakdown. As opposed to all the other quarterbacks that throw interceptions flawlessly. Isn't the definition of an interception "something catastrophically broke down"?- Romo only seems bad because the Cowboys are so good, despite being under 0.500.

Bottom-line - Romo is inconsistent. When it counts, he pushes it too far and loses the game. If you don't believe me look at his post-season record. (Anytime this year or next should be good - doesn't look like the 2013-2014 season will impact it at all)

It is just fashionable to rag on Romo, whether they are Dallas fans or haters. Truth is he is an elite QB as his career NFL passer rating will bear out. Titles come when the circumstances surrounding the team and QB allow for. Tony will make the naysayers eat their words when he is inducted into the HOF. Go Tony!

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com.